A Glimpse Of Autumn

Casting a rippling shadow over fields and stone was one outbuilding leaning into the hillside at Diana and Stephen Paproski’s farmhouse. Its weathered doors ajar, inside sat a rusted tractor’s grill peeking out toward the driveway at Castle Hill Farm. Mr Paproski waded through cows tugging wisps of hay from a bale, a pair of goats led to and fro by curiosity, dogs, ducks huddled in the shade, and one cat perched on a trash can lid to catch the sun.

With summer’s daylight succumbing to an earlier sunset each evening, Mr Paproski is prepping his fields for the autumn season. Lined up and ready for guests are rows of corn that conceal a maze. Pumpkin patches will also beckon to sightseers eager for both decoration and pumpkin pie.

Annie, one of the farm’s cows, is often tethered to a post where guests — especially children — can reach out and pat her head between her glossy brown eyes. With September tumbling toward October, vestiges of Newtown’s agricultural community reemerge to harvest the last of the season’s crops. As hay is bundled, corn stalks are gathered for decoration, and aromas of the final crop of apples and pumpkins simmer in pies or cider, summer’s farmers’ markets will soon fold up their tables for the season in mid-October. Fall is here.

As Newtown’s population grows and its personality adjusts for the future, farming life is still thriving in several enclaves, including Castle Hill Farm.